BP agreed in November to plead guilty to charges involving the workers’ deaths and for lying to Congress about the size of the spill from its broken well, which spewed more than 200 million gallons of oil. Much of it ended up in the Gulf and soiled the shorelines of several states. The company could have withdrawn from the agreement if Vance had rejected it.

<article>NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge on Tuesday approved an agreement for BP PLC to plead guilty to manslaughter and other charges and pay a record $4 billion in criminal penalties for the company’s role in the 2010 oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.

Before she ruled, U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance heard testimony from relatives of 11 workers who died when BP’s blown-out Macondo well triggered an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and started the spill.
</article>
<article> Neither the Justice Department nor BP presented arguments to the judge before her decision in New Orleans.

Vance said the plea deal was “just punishment” considering the risks of litigation for BP and the alternatives to the settlement. She told victims’ relatives who were in court that she read their “truly gut-wrenching” written statements and factored their words into her decision.

“I’ve heard and I truly understand your feelings and the losses you suffered,” she said.

She said she also believes BP executives should have personally apologized to family members.

“I think BP should have done that out of basic humanity,” she said.

The deal doesn’t resolve the federal government’s civil claims against BP. The company could pay billions more in penalties for environmental damage.

BP separately agreed to a settlement with lawyers for Gulf Coast residents and businesses who claim the spill cost them money. BP estimates the deal with private attorneys will cost the company roughly $7.8 billion.

For the criminal settlement, BP agreed to pay nearly $1.3 billion in fines. The largest previous corporate criminal penalty assessed by the Justice Department was a $1.2 billion fine against drug maker Pfizer in 2009.

The criminal settlement also includes payments of nearly $2.4 billion to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and $350 million to the National Academy of Sciences.

In a court filing before the hearing, attorneys for BP and the Justice Department argued that the plea agreement imposes “severe corporate punishment” and will deter BP and other deep-water drilling companies from allowing another disaster to occur.

The Justice Department has reached a separate settlement with rig owner Transocean Ltd. that resolves the government’s civil and criminal claims over the Swiss-based company’s role in the disaster.

Transocean agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of violating the Clean Water Act and pay $1.4 billion in civil and criminal penalties. U.S. District Judge Jane Triche Milazzo has scheduled a Feb. 14 hearing to decide whether to accept that criminal settlement. A different judge will decide whether to accept Transocean’s civil settlement.

Many relatives of rig workers who died in the blast submitted written statements that were critical of BP’s deal. Twenty-eight-year-old Gordon Jones’ family members said BP’s sentence should include a personal, face-to-face apology to his widow and children by BP executives. A brother of Jones also had urged Vance to consider stiffer penalties that prohibit or limit the company’s ability to operate in U.S. waters.Vance, however, said she couldn’t get involved in plea negotiations and only could impose a sentence that adheres to the agreed-upon terms if she accepted it.
Also killed were Jason Anderson, 35, of Midfield, Texas; Aaron Dale “Bubba” Burkeen, 37, of Philadelphia, Miss.; Donald Clark, 49, of Newellton, La.; Stephen Ray Curtis, 40, of Georgetown, La.; Roy Wyatt Kemp, 27, Jonesville, La.; Karl Kleppinger Jr., 38, of Natchez, Miss.; Keith Blair Manuel, 56, of Gonzales, La.; Dewey A. Revette, 48, of State Line, Miss.; Shane M. Roshto, 22, of Liberty, Miss.; and Adam Weise, 24, Yorktown, Texas.

Four current or former BP employees have been indicted on separate criminal charges. BP rig supervisors Robert Kaluza and Donald Vidrine are charged with manslaughter, accused of repeatedly disregarding abnormal high-pressure readings that should have been glaring indications of trouble just before the blowout.

David Rainey, BP’s former vice president of exploration for the Gulf of Mexico, was charged with withholding information from Congress about the amount of oil that was gushing from the well.

Former BP engineer Kurt Mix was charged with deleting text messages about the company’s spill response.

A series of government investigations have blamed the April 20, 2010, blowout on time-saving, cost-cutting decisions by BP and its partners on the drilling project.Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
</article>

BigCatDaddy

01-29-2013 01:27 PM

Where the hell has Donger been anyways?

QuikSsurfer

01-29-2013 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy
(Post 9361960)

Where the hell has Donger been anyways?

Wasn't he saying the oil spill had no ecological impact?

stonedstooge

01-29-2013 01:32 PM

Must be why gas went ****ing up .30 or better the last couple weeks. Damn it Donger

BigCatDaddy

01-29-2013 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by QuikSsurfer
(Post 9361976)

Wasn't he saying the oil spill had no ecological impact?

I think he said the government blew it out of proportion which they did. Not sure about "No ecological impact".

Deberg_1990

01-29-2013 01:35 PM

This spill will destroy the gulf ecosystem for decades!!

Oh wait.....

QuikSsurfer

01-29-2013 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990
(Post 9361993)

This spill will destroy the gulf ecosystem for decades!!

Oh wait.....

There is still oil on the seafloor...
After Hurricane Isaac, seabirds were found oiled and were traced back to Macondo well... Oiled sediments still out there capable of oiling birds 2 1/2 years after the disaster?

gblowfish

01-29-2013 03:12 PM

This is chump change for an oil company. They got off easy.
Last year's PROFIT was $4.6 billion.

BigMeatballDave

01-29-2013 03:24 PM

If your car burns a fossil fuel, don't bitch.

BigCatDaddy

01-29-2013 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish
(Post 9362295)

This is chump change for an oil company. They got off easy.
Last year's PROFIT was $4.6 billion.

So after attorney's fees these lose 2 years in profits. I don't think that's easy.

Nickel D

01-29-2013 03:29 PM

...and every cent of those billions of dollars is going straight into the pot to reduce the national deficit. Am I right?

MahiMike

01-29-2013 03:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigCatDaddy
(Post 9361988)

I think he said the government blew it out of proportion which they did. Not sure about "No ecological impact".

yeah, 10,000 gallons an hour (or some shit like that) is no cause for concern.

gblowfish

01-29-2013 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nickel D
(Post 9362334)

...and every cent of those billions of dollars is going straight into the pot to reduce the national deficit. Am I right?